The Dead, the Dollars, the Drones: 9/11 Era by the Numbers

Ever since the Twin Towers fell, the United States has been at war. The costs of that decade of conflict have been unimaginably high: trillions of dollars spent, hundreds of thousands of lives lost. The numbers are almost too big to grasp, let alone quantify. The graphics below are our incomplete attempt to do so.

These figures are also a way of showing the radical transformation the U.S. military has undergone during the 9/11 era. Drones, once an afterthought in tactical plans, have become a central component, flying millions of hours in combat. Special operations forces have added tens of thousands to their ranks. Bomb-resistant armored vehicles, absent from the American arsenal in 2001, are now a primary means of battlefield transportation — even as Afghanistan’s militants find new ways to render them irrelevant.

We know how many American troops have been killed in this decade’s wars. How many Afghans and Iraqis have lost their lives isn’t clear. The United Nations only started keeping reliable statistics on Afghanistan’s casualties in 2007. The estimates for the number of dead Iraqis vary by 1,000 percent or more. And even if these conflicts last another 10 years, the final toll may never be known.

Oct. 2Congress passes a joint resolution giving President Bush the legal right to use military forces against Iraq.

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2003

Feb. 5In an address to the U.N. Security Council, Colin Powell argues in favor of military action in Iraq. He claims to have 'no doubt' that Saddam Hussein has biological weapons, and is working to obtain parts for nuclear weapons.

March 20Start of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the war in Iraq.

May 1Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld declares that 'major combat' in Afghanistan has ended.

May 2President Bush declares that 'major combat' in Iraq has ended.

May-JuneThe Iraq insurgency begins, composed of a mix of different ethnic groups, militias and fighters opposing the U.S.-led coalition forces and Iraqi government.

Dec. 13Iraq leader Saddam Hussein is captured by the U.S. 4th Infantry Division.

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2004

Feb. 3CIA admits there was no imminent threat from weapons of mass destruction before Iraq invasion of 2003.

SeptemberU.S. Army orders 1,000 Warlocks, or devices that jam the radio signals used to detonate roadside bombs, for use in Iraq. According to Gen. John Abizaid, the top military commander in the Middle East at the time, roadside bombs are his 'No. 1 threat in Iraq.'

November More than 1,000 troops are wounded or killed by roadside bombs in Iraq, the highest number recorded in the war.

Nov. 2President Bush is elected for a second term.

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2005

MayViolent anti-American riots spread across Afghanistan, in reaction to reports that prison guards intentionally damaged a copy of the Quran.

FebruaryCommanders in Iraq make a 'priority 1 urgent' request for more than 1,000 Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, to protect soldiers against the roadside bombs that pose the deadliest threat in the region. Marine Corps doesn't issue a formal request for the vehicles until the end of 2006.

Dec. 16The New York Times publishes a story revealing the National Security Agency's warrantless-wiretapping program.

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2006

MayAfghanistan sees a sharp increase in violence, particularly in roadside bombings and suicide attacks. Human Rights Watch estimates that more than 4,400 Afghans (combatants and civilians) were killed in 2006 — twice the number killed in 2005.

June 7An American air strike kills terrorist and al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was linked to several deadly attacks, including the 2005 Jordan suicide bombings and 2004 Madrid train bombings.

Dec. 18Robert Gates replaces Donald Rumsfeld as secretary of defense.

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2007

Jan 7Gen. David Petraeus is appointed commander of Multinational Force Iraq.

Jan. 10The surge in Iraq begins, with an increase of 21,500 troops.

Aug. 14Suicide car-bomb attack kills nearly 800 Iraqi civilians in northern Iraq and leaves more than 1,500 wounded, the single deadliest attack of the war.

December2007 sees the highest number of U.S. military fatalities, with more than 1,000 troop deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq.

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2008

SeptemberU.S.-Pakistan tensions increase as American troops carry out operations on Pakistani soil, and CIA continues to ramp up drone attacks on Pakistan borders.

Nov. 4President-elect Obama pledges to shift military focus to Afghanistan, increasing U.S. troops in the region and conducting raids on Pakistani soil without Islamabad's permission.

DecemberThe Defense Department reports that violence in Iraq has dropped 80% since before the surge in 2007. Military fatalities dip to 314, from 904 the previous year.

2009

June 10Army Lt. Gen. Stanley McChrystal is promoted to the top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan. He says he will sharply limit the use of airstrikes, to reduce civilian deaths.

Aug. 20Elections in Afghanistan spark allegations of widespread fraud. Runoff vote is scheduled for Nov. 7 between Hamid Karzai and rival Abdullah Abdullah, but Abdullah backs out a week prior, saying a 'transparent' election is not possible.

Dec. 25Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the 'Underpants Bomber,' fails to set off explosives hidden in his underwear while on a trans-Atlantic flight.

DecemberTransportation Security Administration renews efforts to roll out whole-body scanners in airports across the country.

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2010

JuneStanley McChrystal resigns as commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan after an article in Rolling Stone exposes several critical remarks about the president. He is replaced by David Petraeus.

Sept. 1President Obama announces end of the American combat mission in Iraq and a new mission dubbed 'Operation New Dawn,' seven years and 165 days after the first invasion.

Oct. 22Wikileaks releases 391,832 classified U.S. military documents on the Iraq War — the biggest data leak in U.S. military history.

DecemberThis year marks a more violent turn in the Afghanistan war. Troops in Afghanistan now outnumber those in Iraq, Special Operations raids are six times higher than the previous year, and there are more drone strikes in Pakistan than all previous years since 2001 combined.

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2011

May 1Osama bin Laden is killed by U.S. Forces in Pakistan.

June 22President Obama announces plan to reduce troops in Afghanistan by 10,000 by the end of 2011, then 20,000 by summer 2012 and the remainder by 2014.

Aug. 11Taliban shoot down a transport helicopter in eastern Afghanistan, killing 30 American military personnel and 8 Afghans. It is deadliest day for American forces since the war began.